Here we are again, with entry number two in the already legendary Splodinator Super Mario Bros. Super Show! Episode Guide. You may be confused as to why we are covering episode three of the show in installment two. Well, as it turns out, the episodes are ordered incorrectly on the disc, and I stupidly assumed the second episode in the menu would be the second episode of the show when I subjected myself to my weekly 22 minutes of late ’80s cheese. Don’t worry, we’ll get back to cover the real episode two. I should also point out that the DVD box set lacks the Zelda episodes of the show, so I’ll have to skip all of those for now (although I do plan to cover them eventually as well).

Live-action Plot: The Mario Bros. are just finishing up repairs on Sgt. Slaughter’s Steamomatic steam cabinet, when the harsh military man shows up to inspect the work for himself. Mario decides to test the machine in order to avoid any trouble, of course getting stuck inside for the duration of the episode. After Luigi distracts Mr. Slaughter for a sufficient amount of time, Mario is ultimately freed. Obviously, Mario has been shrunk down considerably from the steam, giving us the easy gag of Mario as a little person.

Very Special Guest Robert “Sgt. Slaughter” Remus is a semi-retired wrestler, although he was active during the time of this episode. His appearance as his character reveals a curious twist in pop culture logic: wrestlers are their characters. In episode one, Nicole Eggert was herself, not her character from Charles in Charge, yet this guy is Sgt. Slaughter. Ever notice how long it took for Dwayne Johnson to get away from being The Rock? What’s up with that?

Animated Plot: Princess Toadstool has been captured yet again and the Bros. must venture through a Western-themed area to rescue her from King Koopa. Along the way they are assaulted by Koopa henchman, Mouser. To really up the Mario 2 references, the good brothers Mario also jump across some logs.

Horrible Stereotype Alert: The episode opens with the live-action Marios taking a call from Sgt. Slaughter on their pizza phone. They have a phone… made out of pizza. Yeah. The cartoon is again rife with references to Italian food and Mario’s seemingly unconquerable appetite. I’m beginning to suspect the show relies on fat jokes as often as it does Italian stereotype jokes.